Aarti Mann

Indian-American actress Aarti Mann is widely recognized for her signature role as Priya Koothrappali on the hit comedy "The Big Bang Theory" (CBS, 2007- ). Her first screen part came as a supporting player in "The Memsahib" (2006), the directorial debut by her sister, Kruti Majmudar. A few years later, Mann briefly appeared in an episode of the sci-fi/drama series "Heroes" (NBC, 2006-2010) and had a small role in the feature comedy "Today's Special" (2009).

Her big break finally arrived in 2010, when she was cast as the recurring character of Priya, giving her considerably more visibility as an actress.

A daughter of Indian doctors with Bengali background, Mann became interested in acting during her youth. After her father died, her mother raised Mann and her siblings in Pennsylvania, encouraging them to pursue their desired careers. Following a stint studying film at New York University, Mann joined the cast of "The Memsahib" (2006), an India-set drama written and directed by her sister, Kruti.

This positive experience inspired Mann to pursue acting further, but she found few roles outside of short films, eventually landing a bit part on one installment of the superhero show "Heroes" (NBC, 2006-2010) and in the Aasif Mandvi-starring culinary comedy "Today's Special" (2009).

Mann's days of tiny roles were over, however, when she won the part of Priya on the highly-rated sitcom "The Big Bang Theory" in 2010. Appearing as the lovely sister of Raj (Kunal Nayyar), Mann was a key element in an ongoing storyline where Priya became romantically involved with one of the show's proudly nerdy leads, Leonard (Johnny Galecki).

Though her "Big Bang Theory" run ended in 2011, she continued to work in television, turning up on episodes of the lively dramas "Leverage" (TNT, 2008-2012) and "Suits" (USA, 2011- ). In 2022 Mann was included in the main cast of "The Recruit" (Netflix, 2022- ).